Employee Directory

Amy Leshinsky Assistant Professor, Education
Education

Ed.D., Northeastern University
M.A., Boston College
M.A.T., Tufts University
B.A., University of Delaware

Dr. Amy Leshinsky is an Assistant Professor of Education at Curry College. Her teaching and scholarship focus on literacy and English education, with particular attention to children’s and young adult literature, book censorship, inclusive pedagogy, and critical literacy.

Dr. Leshinsky’s recent research examines how educators and students engage with literature in relation to identity, equity, and civic life. Her work has been published in Policy Futures in Education, The Dragon Lode, English Leadership Quarterly, Salem Press’s Critical Insights series, and other scholarly venues. She has presented her research at national and international conferences, including the National Council of Teachers of English, the Literacy Research Association, the American Educational Research Association, the Council for Exceptional Children, and the Northeast Modern Language Association.

Dr. Leshinsky has also contributed to grant-funded early literacy initiatives, including a recent $190,600 grant through the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education, which supports early literacy development and teacher preparation. She serves as Co-Editor of The Dragon Lode, the journal of the Children’s Literature and Reading Special Interest Group of the International Literacy Association, and she has served as a reviewer for national conferences and scholarly publications.

Prior to teaching in higher education, Dr. Leshinsky spent nearly two decades teaching secondary English in both in-person and online settings. She has been recognized for excellence in teaching, including receiving the Faculty Excellence in Teaching Award at Roger Williams University.

Peer Reviewed Articles

Leshinsky, A. (forthcoming). Teaching topics censored in literature: A quantitative study into educator perspectives of professional responsibility. Journal of Intellectual Freedom and Privacy.

Leshinsky, A. and McCormack, R. (2026). Book banning in U.S. K-12 classrooms: Teacher perceptions on the impact of book censorship on students. Policy Futures in Education.

Kelly, K. and Leshinsky, A. (2025). Unwriting the norm: Using middle grade novels to disrupt heteronormative language in language arts classrooms. Dragon Lode.

Leshinsky, A. (2021). Removing technological barriers for transformative K-12 learning. English Leadership Quarterly.

Book Chapters

Leshinsky, A. (accepted). Rhetorical reading for critical literacy: The pedagogical value of using political speeches in the first-year writing classroom. In L. Kalbfleisch (Ed.), Practical Strategies for Teaching Reading to College Writers.

Leshinsky, A. (accepted). The life and career of Toni Morrison. In J. Williams (Ed.), Critical Insights: Song of Solomon. Salem Press.

Leshinsky, A. (2025). The ongoing siege: Challenges and censorship of Toni Morrison’s The Bluest Eye. In J. Williams (Ed.), Critical Insights: The Bluest Eye. Salem Press.

Leshinsky, A. (2025). The life and career of Richard Wright. In J. Williams (Ed.), Critical Insights: Richard Wright. Salem Press.

Leshinsky, A. (2024). Authorship and influence in the critical reception of Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein; or The Modern Prometheus. In L. Nicosia & J. F. Nicosia (Eds.), Critical Insights: Frankenstein; or The Modern Prometheus. Salem Press.

Leshinsky, A. (2023). Puppets upon puppets upon puppets: Forces at play in the mother’s construction in All the Pretty Horses. In L. Nicosia & J. F. Nicosia (Eds.), Critical Insights: All the Pretty Horses. Salem Press.

Leshinsky, A. (2023). All the Pretty Horses alters the reception and prestige of McCarthy. In L. Nicosia & J. F. Nicosia (Eds.), Critical Insights: All the Pretty Horses. Salem Press.

Leshinsky, A. (2023). The impact of Alice Childress’s Florence on Lorraine Hansberry’s A Raisin in the Sun. In P. Baley (Ed.), Critical Insights: A Raisin in the Sun, Salem Press.

Leshinsky, A. (2023). There’s no such thing as a ‘white folks’ neighborhood: Racism in the housing crisis.” Critical Insights: A Raisin in the Sun, Salem Press.

Leshinsky, A. (2023). The critical reception of Ralph Waldo Emerson: A longstanding American commitment to individuality and freedom.” In J. Williams (Ed.), Critical Insights: Ralph Waldo Emerson, Salem Press.

Leshinsky, A. (2022). Reception of Virginia Woolf: Woolf belongs to no one movement.” In L. Nicosia & J. F. Nicosia (Eds.), Critical Insights: Virginia Woolf, Salem Press.

Leshinsky, A. (2022). Reception of Alice Walker’s The Color Purple. In J. Williams (Ed.), Critical Insights: The Color Purple, Salem Press.

Book Reviews

Leshinsky, A. (2026). [Review of the book Uncredited: Women’s overlooked, misattributed & stolen work, by A. Tyra]. Women and Social Movements in the United States since 1600 – 2000. 

Leshinsky, A. (2025). Teaching with fandoms: A social justice approach to literacy education, [Review of the book Fandoms in the Classroom: A social justice approach to transforming literacy learning, by K. Jones & S. Storm]. English Journal.

Leshinsky, A. (2024). [Review of the book The ivory tower, Harry Potter, and beyond: More essays on the works of J.K. Rowling, by L. A. Whited (Ed.)]. The Journal of Popular Culture. https://doi.org/10.1111/jpcu.13357